Published 10:42 am, Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, STF

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Political controversy: Marco Rubio's Yom Kippur fundraiser

Florida Sen. and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio caught flack for a Dallas-area fundraiser Tuesday. By chance, the event fell on Judaism's holiest day, and was hosted at the home of a collector who displayed paintings by Adolf Hitler, a signed copy of his book and some place settings he had used.

See 10 more of the biggest gaffes in presidential campaigning history ...

10. Al Gore inventing the Internet. (2000) Vice President Al Gore was locked in a tough primary race against former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley when he spoke to CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer. Ticking off his qualifications for president, he noted, “During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.” Gore indeed had been an early proponent of the Internet. But his misstatement became part of a damaging image of the Tennessee Democrat as a serial exaggerator. (Photo Aug. 10, 2000. TOM MIHALEK/AFP/Getty Images)

10. Al Gore inventing the Internet. (2000) Vice President Al Gore was locked in a tough primary race against former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley when he spoke to CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer. Ticking off his ... more

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9. George Romney’s “brainwash” comment. (1968)Another Romney, another gaffe. Michigan Gov. Mitt Romney, an early favorite for the 1968 Republican nomination, was the only anti-war candidate in a field that eventually included Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan. In a TV interview, he explained that his early support for the Vietnam War was a result of brainwashing. “When I came back from Vietnam I just had the greatest brainwashing that anyone can get,” he said. “Not only by the generals, but also by the diplomatic corps over there. They do a very thorough job.” Romney’s campaign never recovered. (March 22, 1967. Fox Photos/Getty Images) less

9. George Romney’s “brainwash” comment. (1968)
Another Romney, another gaffe. Michigan Gov. Mitt Romney, an early favorite for the 1968 Republican nomination, was the only anti-war candidate in a field ... more

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8. Gary Hart’s challenge to the media to “follow me.” (1988) When rumors first began circulating in 1987 that Democratic presidential frontrunner Gary Hart was having affairs, he taunted the press. “Follow me around,” he challenged the media. “It will be boring.” Well, they did. And it wasn’t boring. The Miami Herald discovered a woman named Donna Rice. The famous National Enquirer photos on the good ship “Monkey Business” followed. And Hart — whose campaign buttons stated “My Heart Belongs to Gary” — ended up jilted by voters. (Hart sits on a dock with ice on his lap, 1987. National Enquirer/Getty Images) less

8. Gary Hart’s challenge to the media to “follow me.” (1988) When rumors first began circulating in 1987 that Democratic presidential frontrunner Gary Hart was having affairs, he taunted the press. ... more

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7. Barry Goldwater embracing “extremism.” (1964)It has become a classic of conservative oratory, but in 1964, Barry Goldwater’s acceptance speech at the Cow Palace in San Francisco became a classic example of how to alienate swing voters. The Arizona Republicans call to arms ended in this crescendo: “Those who do not care for our cause, we don’t expect to enter our ranks in any case. And let our Republicanism, so focused and so dedicated, not be made fuzzy and futile by unthinking and stupid labels. I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.” The GOP nominee was headed for a massive defeat.This July 17, 1964, photo shows Goldwater and his running mate William Miller accepting the Republican Party nomination in San Francisco. (AFP/AFP/Getty Images) less

7. Barry Goldwater embracing “extremism.” (1964)
It has become a classic of conservative oratory, but in 1964, Barry Goldwater’s acceptance speech at the Cow Palace in San Francisco became a classic ... more

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6. Barack Obama laments voters who “cling” to guns and religion. (2008) Losing candidates’ gaffes are usually the ones that are best remembered. But then-Sen. Barack Obama made a doozy at a closed-door California fundraiser in 2008. Trying to explain the frustrations of small-town, blue-collar voters to wealthy San Francisco area Democrats, he said: And it’s not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.”He’s been living down the gaffe ever since. Most recently, Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan talked about how he’s a proud Catholic deer hunter.(Obama speaks in Columbus, Ohio, Sept. 17, 2012. Matt Sullivan/Getty Images.) less

6. Barack Obama laments voters who “cling” to guns and religion. (2008) Losing candidates’ gaffes are usually the ones that are best remembered. But then-Sen. Barack Obama made a doozy at a closed-door ... more

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5. Howard Dean’s scream. (2004) The one-time Democratic frontrunner’s campaign never recovered from his “yee-haw” moment the night of his defeat in the 2004 Iowa caucuses. The former Vermont governor got carried away while reciting a list of states he had targeted for victory. “The Scream” became The Story of the night. And the campaign. (Dean screams in West Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 19, 2004. Joe Raedle/Getty Images) less

5. Howard Dean’s scream. (2004) The one-time Democratic frontrunner’s campaign never recovered from his “yee-haw” moment the night of his defeat in the 2004 Iowa caucuses. The former Vermont governor ... more

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4. Michael Dukakis in the tank. (1988) This is a gaffe without a word. Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis wanted to look presidential. Tough on defense. He took a ride in a tank. He looked like a little boy in a big helmet. Big mistake. Within 24 hours, the Duke’s tank ride was a Republican campaign commercial. (July 21, 1988, at the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta. CHARLES UTZ/AFP/Getty Images) less

4. Michael Dukakis in the tank. (1988) This is a gaffe without a word. Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis wanted to look presidential. Tough on defense. He took a ride in a tank. He looked like a ... more

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3. Gerald Ford liberating Poland. (1976) In the first presidential debate of 1976, President Gerald Ford mistakenly said that Poland was free of Soviet domination. It wasn’t. The gaffe proved costly to Ford among blue-collar voters whose families came from Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe. (Aug. 28, 1974, STR/AFP/Getty Images) less

3. Gerald Ford liberating Poland. (1976) In the first presidential debate of 1976, President Gerald Ford mistakenly said that Poland was free of Soviet domination. It wasn’t. The gaffe proved costly to Ford ... more

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2. George McGovern's saying he was “one thousand percent” behind his running mate. (1972) When the media revealed that Democratic vice presidential nominee Tom Eagleton had undergone electroshock therapy for depression, there was a call from many top Democrats for presidential nominee George McGovern to replace him on the ticket. McGovern, the antiwar senator from South Dakota, held firm. “I am one thousand percent for Tom Eagleton and I have no intention of dropping him from the ticket,” McGovern said. Soon, McGovern dropped Eagleton from the ticket. His credibility also dropped. He lost in a landslide to Richard M. Nixon. (McGovern and Eagleton campaign together in 1972. Anthony Korody/Getty Images) less

1. John Kerry being for it before he was against it. (2004) Under attack for changing his mind on important issues for political reasons, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry explained his switch on a funding bill. “I actually did vote for the $87 billion, before I voted against it,” he declared. That one sentence came to define the Massachusetts senator in the minds of many swing voters. Republican National Convention attendees taunted Kerry by waving flip-flops on the Madison Square Garden convention floor. Republicans repeated the ad from coast to coast. Kerry came close but fell just short of unseating President George W. Bush. (Photo Jab. 14, 2004. Spencer Platt/Getty Images) less

1. John Kerry being for it before he was against it. (2004) Under attack for changing his mind on important issues for political reasons, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry explained his switch on a ... more

Controversy erupted Tuesday over a presidential candidate's fundraiser on holy Jewish holiday at a Texas mansion home to personal artifacts of Adolf Hitler.

Interest groups issued sharp statements over Republican Sen. Marco Rubio's donor dinner at the Dallas-area mansion of real estate magnate Harlan Crow, whose eclectic art collection includes paintings by the Nazi fuhrer, a signed copy of his book and some place settings he once used, the Dallas Morning News reported.

"Holding an event in a house featuring the artwork and signed autobiography of a man who dedicated his life to extinguishing the Jewish people is the height of insensitivity and indifference," said Democratic National Convention Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz in a statement. "It is astounding that the presence of these items that represent horror for millions of Jews the world over would not stop Mr. Rubio or anyone on his team in their tracks when planning this event."

"Rather than manufacture a false controversy over a collection of historic memorabilia that includes a statue of Margret Thatcher and effects belonging to Abraham Lincoln, Debbie Wasserman Schultz should have opposed the weak Clinton-Obama Iran deal that puts Israel's safety in jeopardy," said RNC national press secretary Allison Moore.

National Jewish Democratic Council chairman Greg Rosenbaum told the Morning News that the event on Yom Kippur was "viscerally concerning to the American Jewish populace."

But the Morning News reported in 2008 that Crow's collection of artifacts is immense, including a garden full of statues of communist leaders he calls the "Garden of Evil." He also has Dwight Eisenhower's military helmet, a drinking mug of Paul Revere and the deed to George Washington's Mount Vernon estate.

Tickets to Rubio's event cost between $1,000 and $10,800, the Morning News reported.

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